Cymbidium vs Dendrobium flowers?

[Bulbopedilum]

This may sound uber stupid but whats the main difference between the flowers of cymbidium and dendrobium? I dont really see any big differences in the flowers from internet pictures. Are they just technically different?

[murph7]

All orchid flowers share the "same building plan", so I guess many species/genera might look similar.

One clear difference for me is that the "typical" cymbidium has flowers that are waxier/meatier than the ones from the typical dendrobium.

[PaphMadMan]

The question isn't stupid at all, but perhaps too general to give a meaningful answer. Other than the general organization that all orchid flowers share - it is mostly aspects of floral anatomy that defines what an orchid is vs. other monocots - I'm not sure what similarities you see. Some Cymbidium flowers don't look much like some other Cymbidium flowers, and many Dendrobium flowers don't look at all like other Dendrobiums flowers. But some Cymbidiums look like some Dendrobiums look like some Phalaenopsis look like some Encyclias, etc. We would have to know what Cymbidium is being compared to what Dendrobium to even begin to answer.

[estación seca]

Dendrobiums all have a nectar spur on the back of the flower. Some are longer; some shorter. Cymbidiums do not.